KUALA LUMPUR, July 23 — The moratorium on new diploma-level nursing courses at private higher learning institutions (IPTS), which has been in force since 2010, will end August 1, said Deputy Higher Education Minister Datuk Mustapha Sakmud.
He said the decision to lift the moratorium was made by the Cabinet on July 5, following a series of discussions between the Higher Education Ministry (MOHE) and the Health Ministry on the shortage of registered nurses in the country.
Mustapha said the moratorium will be lifted to address the nurse shortage, which has been influenced by several factors, including a drop in the number of IPTS offering diploma-level nursing courses.
“The country will face a shortage of registered nurses for healthcare needs and population demands by 2030 if the decline in the intake of new nursing diploma students at IPTS and the number of registered nurses continues,” he said during the question-and-answer session at Dewan Negara today.
He said this in reply to a question from Senator Robert Lau Hui Yew about the MOHE’s strategy to address the shortage of nurses and whether more IPTS would be allowed to offer nursing courses.
According to Mustapha, the MOHE will issue a circular to all IPTS soon, providing details on the lifting of the moratorium.
He said the moratorium was put in place due to the excessive number of nursing courses available at IPTS.
“If we do not take action now, we will face a 62 per cent deficit in nurses by 2030. That’s why the government has introduced this measure, and we will ensure the number of nurses meets the needs of both the industry and the population,” he said.
— Bernama
